


Just Snow

by Glitteringworlds



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Character Study, F/F, Nohr | Conquest Route
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-26
Updated: 2019-02-26
Packaged: 2019-11-05 19:50:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17925239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Glitteringworlds/pseuds/Glitteringworlds
Summary: Just because Flora has joined Corrin's fight, doesn't mean she knows where she fits in it. Or how she feels about snow. Part character study, part pre-relationship sappiness, part an attempt to bridge the gap between unwilling servant and smitten retainer. All Flora being a useless lesbian.





	Just Snow

Flora had never understood why people in Nohr got so excited about the first snow of winter. And by people, of course, she really meant Corrin. No one would get excited in the castle the way Corrin got excited. No one seemed to feel anything half as much as she did, or at least that's how it felt to Flora sometimes.

But the snow - Flora felt almost protective of it. She had grown up in a place where the cold hurt, killed even. Snow was many things to the Ice Tribe: a tool, a concern, an obstacle, a canvas. It was certainly beautiful as well, Flora had always thought so. But it was beautiful because it was part of life, one year after the next. Beautiful and familiar. The way Corrin watched it, like a stranger gaping at something they didn't understand, had felt like a transgression. Just another part of Flora's people that was stuck in that castle, just another thing to entertain the bored nobility.

It didn't snow in the Astral Plane. It didn't snow, because it didn't rain, because things never really changed there. It was an island of eternal stillness, aside from the fact that it could be reshaped at will, of course. That had taken Flora some time to wrap her head around. She'd wake up some mornings to find buildings rearranged, or new ones built overnight. The power was a little unsettling, if convenient.

Returning to the real world after days and days on the Astral Plane was also a shock that Flora was still adjusting to. At least she wasn't the only one surprised to step out of the eternally pleasant sameness into a field of snow. Several people gasped, wandering a out of the portal and looking around them in surprise. Behind her, Flora could hear Niles curse at the sudden cold. A delighted shout came a few seconds later, and the distinct shape of Lady Elise's horse and trailing pigtails whipped past, followed not long after by Lady Corrin herself, much slower on foot, but no less excited.

"Elise, would you slow down?" Corrin laughed even as she tried to scold her sister. "We are supposed to be scouting, not frolicking."

"It's so pretty though! I didn't even know it snowed this far south." Having stopped her horse not far beyond the group, Elise wasted no time in dismounting and crouching down to begin packing what Flora could only assume was a snowball.

Corrin must have had the same thought, because she picked up her pace to try and reach Elise before she could be plastered in the face. Though, judging by the shadow that was Kaze trailing close behind her, Flora thought she needn't have worried. Truly, Lady Corrin had picked up a mother hen in that one. A little snowball never hurt anyone.

"It's nice, isn't it?" Flora jumped at Felicia's voice suddenly beside her. Corrin had reached Elise and, laughing, made a dive for the snowball just as Elise spun away. Sighing, Flora turned to her sister.

"It's just snow."

"Yes, but I always love the first snow of winter. Don't you Flora? It reminds me of home."

Flora huffed out a laugh. "Snow is just snow."

Giving her a warm, crooked smile, Felicia bumped Flora with her shoulder. "I know you miss home. You're allowed to, you know. The whole unfeeling icy exterior thing doesn't have to stay up  _ all _ the time."

"You don't have to spill tea on me all the time either," Flora retorted wryly. "And yet."

They both lapsed into a brief silence, watching together as Kaze became the inevitable first casualty of the snowball fight when Elise finally took aim and threw at Corrin. Though Flora could swear that the snowball actually would have been several feet wide if he had let it actually reach its destination. A mother hen as well as an enabler, Flora thought to herself. Just wonderful. Corrin made a rather dramatic show of thanking him for his noble sacrifice.

"Flora?"

"Yes?"

"Why  _ did _ you come here? Not that I'm not glad to see you, I mean, it's just that I thought with everything that happened, that you'd want to stay with dad and help the tribe, not..."

"Not get involved in another war?" 

"Another?"

Flora sighed. She knew that Felicia knew about what had happened when Corrin and Lady Elise visited the Ice Tribe. And she knew the Felicia had understood, even when they were both still working at the castle, that the stirring discontent back home wasn't something likely to be ended with just words. Felicia had always loved Corrin though. She'd been willing to accept the castle as home, to make the best of their predicament. And Flora had always tried to hide her bitterness from her sister, as best she could. Even if it drove a wedge between them sometimes. 

Still, after a moment of quiet, she seemed to understand what Flora meant. "I'm sorry I wasn't there," she said quietly. "That I wasn't home, when... the fight happened."

"I'm glad you weren't there, Felicia. I wouldn't have wanted you to get hurt." Flora made a point not to think too hard about who would have been the one hurting Felicia, if she had made the trip with Corrin instead of Jacob. Would she had been at Flora's side? Or would Felicia have been pleading with Flora from across the frozen lake, as Jacob had? As Corrin had?

It wasn't a question Flora wanted answered. It was one that both sisters had made a point to avoid bringing up. Which was answer enough, in the end.

"I came back because I thought it was the right thing to do, Felicia. Nothing more. The throne of Nohr has been rotting for too long. And Lady Corrin, she... She seems like our best chance. Maybe our only one." Flora sighed again. She wasn't sure why she thought Corrin could help, wasn't sure why she had spent so many nights back home, replaying conversations over and over again in her head. Maybe it was as simple as the fact that King Garon was cruel, and Corrin was not. Corrin was kind, and it was not a gentle kindness. Oh, it was gentle enough now, playing with her sister and retainers. It was a foolish, naive kindness, the kind that could call for a hold on war and rebellion and suffering for the sake of a snowball fight.

But it wasn't gentle. Corrin wouldn't stop until she'd found whatever it was she was searching for, no matter how hard King Garon and his lackeys squeezed her. 

Shaking her head, Flora began to trudge out towards the frolicking. Leo had been dragged into the fight, which meant of course that Odin was also involved, and Niles as well. Odin seemed much more excited by the prospect than the other two, posing dramatically while Leo and Niles glared at him. Elise had erected an intimidating fort in the form of Effie hunkered behind her shield, and she and Arthur were working on their stockpile of snowballs.

Corrin noticed Flora and gave her a wide smile, waving her frantically over. "Flora! Perfect, I need someone else for my team."

"Lady Corrin, I apologize, I simply wanted to tell you that we have scarves and hats back at the castle. You shouldn't run around out here where you could get a chill."

"And what about you? You aren't wearing much more than I am."

"It doesn't affect me the same way it does you. If you'd like, I can return to the Astral Plane to retrieve hats and gloves for everyone, but until then, please-" Flora ducked her head out of the way of a snowball that came hurtling towards her from the direction of Leo's group of unhappy participants, and turned her head to see Niles glaring wickedly at her.

"If the Lady wishes you to aid her, is it not your job to do so, Flora?" Niles held another snowball casually in his hand, though the effect was somewhat lessened by Leo slouching into his jacket right next to him, rolling his eyes. 

Flora didn't bother to answer him. She served Corrin, true, but it was not in the same way that Niles served Leo. She was here to do her duty, and her duty alone. It fell on her to remember that, since unlike the rest of the Princes and Princesses of Nohr, Lady Corrin had no understanding of the divide between herself and those who served her. Although. Flora had seen where Niles eyes lingered at times. Maybe it wasn't only Lady Corrin who had trouble understanding how things ought to be. But that was all the more reason for Flora to know her place.

Corrin had stood up and made her way over to Flora, and she approached now with a sheepish smile. "I'm sorry about him, you don't really have to join or anything. I just thought it would be fun for you."

"Fun?"

"Yeah, well, it's been a while since you've been back home, hasn't it? I imagine you miss the snow."

"People keep telling me I ought to be, but it's no matter to me. It's just water, after all."

Corrin looked horror-struck, and though her reaction was obviously overstated, Flora thought there was more than a hint of actual disappointment. "But it's not, not at all! It's beautiful! Come here." Turning, Corrin shouted back at Kaze. "Stick with Leo for a minute, okay? He probably needs all the help he can get."

There was just enough time for Flora to see Kaze nod solemnly, before Corrin had grabbed her hand, pulling her out through the clearing. The snow wasn't heavy, just enough to crunch underfoot. Pulled along, Flora wished that she had better shoes, then immediately remembered that Corrin wasn't wearing shoes at all, and just about began trying to lecture her all over again. But no - no one told Corrin to put on shoes. It was an impossible battle, and she seemed to be doing fine anyways. Even without shoes. Or a hat, or scarf. Her hand was warm in Flora's, though it was no longer as soft as it had been once. 

When they were both younger, Flora had hated how soft Corrin's hands were. It was always the small details about the princess that had bothered Flora the most, like the way she slurped her soup, or how she'd compliment Flora's dress even though it was the same maid uniform Flora wore every day, the same uniform that every maid in the castle wore. She hated having to pretend to smile and accept the compliment, and hated it even more when Corrin would occasionally see through her and ask what was wrong.

Corrin's hands weren't so soft any more, and these days Flora didn't know what to think about the rest of it.

At the edge of the clearing, Corrin stopped, though she didn't let go of Flora's hand. There were a few feet of trees, and then a drop that looked out over the deep blue of a still unfrozen lake. It looked almost black against the soft white of the snow around it, a cruel dark stain at the center of so much silence. A frozen lake could sometimes be dangerous, but if the ice was thick enough you could stand on it, skate on it - this looked as if it would swallow someone up without even a ripple to show they were gone.

Next to her, Corrin sighed. "Isn't it lovely?"

"It certainly looks cold, Lady Corrin."

"I always love the first snow of the season." Corrin still held Flora's hand as she spoke. "It feels like the whole world stops for a moment. I don't know, maybe it's silly. But I'm glad I get to share this one with you."

"You are?" Flora ducked her head and glanced over at Corrin, trying her best to be subtle about it. The sky was grey and dim, but the snow made everything seem bright, like the whole world was glowing. Corrin had her eyes fixed on the lake below, and she squeezed Flora's hand as she drew in an unsteady breath.

"I don't know if you remember it," she said, "I actually think I had half forgotten it myself, until recently. I was upset about something, I don't even remember why. Some conversation I'd had with Xander. I think it was about me wanting to leave the castle. I had been crying all night, and you and Felicia had stayed-"

Corrin's eyes darted over to Flora, and Flora quickly looked away as Corrin continued talking. "Well, I guess you probably had been ordered to stay with me that night and keep me company. But you went off to get something, and when you came back you told me it was snowing. You and Felicia took me up to the roof to watch. I'd never really noticed the first snow before that. I thought it was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. It was like the stars were falling out of the sky."

Flora didn't say anything. She did remember that night, in the broadest strokes. She'd been tired, and worried about Felicia, and she had been angry. Angry at Corrin for being so needy, angry at Xander for not being the one to comfort his sister. Angry, always angry, at King Garon. She remembered the snow, but she didn't remember anything in particular about it being pretty. She hadn't even realized that it was the first snow of the season.

"I know it wasn't easy for you and Felicia," Corrin started, and then hastily corrected, "or I've been learning that, at least." She smiled weakly. 

Flora kept staring at her feet. "Lady Corrin, you need not-"

"Don't I though? You call me 'Lady Corrin' and serve me tea like everything is the way it was, but it's all different now, and I... I don't even know why you came back. Not that I'm not appreciative! But I don't want you to feel like to have to be here."

"Do you want me to leave?"

"No." Corrin's answer came quickly. "I don't want that."

"What do you want, then?" Flora knew she was being stubborn. She always knew when she was being stubborn. 

"I want to know what  _ you _ want, Flora." 

Carefully, Flora pulled her hand from Corrin's, folding both of her hands demurely in front of her. It was a safe way to stand, a blank slate, an unshakable neutrality. It was the mask she'd worn since the day she was brought to serve at the castle. "I don't know what I want, Lady Corrin."

"Do you want to leave?"

Flora watched the snow fall, and watched it disappear into the yawning black below them. "I don't think anyone has ever asked me that before."

"It's not an easy question, is it?" Corrin laughed. "Trust me, I know."

Flora couldn't help but chuckle herself, after a moment. "It seems that being locked away in a castle for most of your life doesn't prepare you much for having to decide where to go once you are free."

"With... with Nohr and Hoshido, I don't know that I could have answered that question."

"But you did, didn't you? You're here, after all."

Glancing over again, Flora could see Corrin shake her head, then pause, realizing that Flora might not see it. She turned to face Flora, and this time Flora didn't look away. "I never wanted to leave. Not my family in Nohr, and not my family in Hoshido."

"So how did you decide?"

"I didn't want to leave either of them. But more than anything, I wanted to stay with the family I've grown up with. I wanted to be with them, and with Nohr. I wanted things to be better here.

"I know I did leave Hoshido," Corrin continued, "and I know they might never forgive me. But I can't think about it like that. When I think about staying with them though - with Elise, and Leo, and Xander and Camilla - that gives me hope. I hope maybe everyone will understand that someday."

"I can't tell you if you did the right thing, Corrin. But I do understand."

Corrin tilted her head to the side, giving Flora a small smile. "Thank you. That means a lot to me." She held out a hand to Flora, palm up. "So what do you think then? Do you want to stay with us?"

Without saying anything, Flora took the offered hand, letting her fingers lie gently over Corrin's. It made her feel delicate and small, to be held like that, as if she was a fine lady at a ball. It was vulnerable. But not entirely bad.

"I do," Flora said.

And some small lie she'd held in her heart for a very long time began to melt.


End file.
